The Lions won their third match of the 2013 tour but they were tested to the full by Quade Cooper's impressive Queensland Reds outfit

The Lions got the test they wanted in Brisbane - but Warren Gatland's men responded to protect their 100% tour record.

After the row over the Western Force's weakened selection in midweek, the Queensland Reds showed the Lions respect by naming their strongest team possible minus their Wallaby stars and the mercurial skills of Quade Cooper caused them plenty of headaches.

Cooper was out to make a point after being omitted from the Wallabies squad to take on the Lions and the Reds were keen to put width on the game.

But the Lions - with skipper Sam Warburton making his first appearance on tour and becoming the 800th Lion into the bargain - established forward dominance at set-piece to record a third straight win.

The bad news for the Lions were injuries to backs Manu Tuilagi and Tommy Bowe which might threaten their participation in the Test series, the visitors having already been rocked by loose-head props Cian Healy and Gethin Jenkins being ruled out of the tour.

But there were plenty of positives for the Lions with some strong running from replacement George North, 17 points from the boot of Owen Farrell and flankers Warburton and Dan Lydiate improving as the game wore on.

Cooper sparked a blistering Reds start and only grim Lions defence kept the hosts at bay, but the tourists broke out in the ninth minute and should have been rewarded with a try.

Bowe stepped inside and past several defenders after taking a scissors pass from Jonathan Davies and threw a pass to his fellow wing Alex Cuthbert.

The Wales finisher looked as if he would make the corner but he was denied by a brilliant covering tackle by Luke Morahan.

Farrell put the Lions ahead from 30 metres but the Reds countered spectacularly as Morahan gathered a loose ball inside his own half and shrugged off Cuthbert with the help of an undetected block from Ben Lucas.

Morahan then stepped outside Ben Youngs and fended off Warburton before chipping over Stuart Hogg and collecting for a wonderful solo score.

Davies butchered another scoring chance, fly-hacking over a gaping try line after a Cooper-Lucas mix-up, but Farrell's boot cut the deficit to a single point.

Cooper's mixed afternoon continued with a missed pot at goal and the Reds were punished moments after Morahan had saved another try by dislodging the ball from Farrell's grasp.

Joe Schatz picked up from an under-pressure Reds scrum but the ball broke free and scrum-half Ben Youngs pounced to touch down.

The Lions should have scored again when North, on as a replacement for shoulder injury victim Tuilagi, embarked on an incredible mazy 70-yard run before off-loading to Warburton.

The skipper almost made it to the line but he was denied by a band of Reds defenders and ultimately the television match official.

But Farrell landed a third penalty on the stroke of half-time to give the Lions a 16-7 interval lead.

What had been a breathless open game of rugby became more difficult in the second period as constant drizzle made the ball greasy and handling difficult.

The Lions looked as if they were in control but they were caught by a Reds counter and the Super 15 side worked the space to send scrum-half Nick Frisby over, replecement Mike Harris missing a straightforward conversion.

There were a few more hairy moments for the Lions to endure before Farrell's fifth penalty sealed matters.

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